More Information

Sandy in Stamford, by the numbers:
35,000 Stamford residents without power, representing 63 percent of the city.
12 CL&P line crews and 4 tree crews working in Stamford
37 police officers out at height of storm
48 traffic intersections lost power
724 911 calls made between 3 p.m. and midnight Monday
36 roads blocked by tree and debris
663 people used emergency shelters, including 448 at Stamford High School, 213 at Rippowam Middle School and 2 Scofield Magnet Middle School
10 animals stayed at shelters, including 9 dogs and 1 cat
560 calls fielded by the Citizen Services Center since the start of storm

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STAMFORD -- Hurricane Sandy spared Stamford lives but knocked out power to more than half the city and sent hundreds of people to emergency shelters Monday night, city officials said Tuesday.

"I'm happy to report that as of right now there has been no loss of life," Mayor Michael Pavia said at a morning news conference at the Government Center. "We're trying to make all conditions safe. That is our priority right now."

One Stamford driver was injured during the height of the storm when a tree fell on the car she was driving, Deputy Fire Chief Trevor Roach said. The driver suffered a minor neck injury and was transported by ambulance to Stamford Hospital, where she was treated and released.

About 35,000 Stamford customers -- or 63 percent of the city -- were left without power Tuesday. Connecticut Light & Power assigned 12 line crews and four tree crews to Stamford for power restoration, Pavia said.

"We have never had this many customers without power," Pavia said. "Ever. In any storm."

Director of Operations Ernie Orgera said utility workers were embedded with city operations workers, who worked to clear trees from about three dozen blocked roads Tuesday morning. The mayor said he believes CL&P, which suffered harsh criticism for its response to major storms over the last several years, has improved its power restoration efforts. He said he does not believe Stamford residents will be in the dark longer than they were during Tropical Storm Irene in 2011.

"Even though there are many more outages, I think that the crews that are coming in to this area, as well as the procedures that are in place, are much more methodical," he said. "I think you're going to see systematic power restoration throughout the city."

The city's three shelters took in a record number of residents during the storm, with occupancy peaking at 663 people late Monday night, Environmental Inspection Director Ronald Miller said. Nine dogs and one cat also rode out the hurricane at Stamford High School. One shelter at Stamford High School remained open Tuesday evening.

"I've been working for the city for 25 years and this is the first time we've ever seen 400 people at Stamford High School," Miller said Tuesday. "I think people were aware of the severity and they responded."

Stamford officials decided to issue a mandatory evacuation for 1,000 additional residents in the city's third and fourth flood zones late Monday after receiving an 8:15 p.m. phone call from the governor's office, Director of Public Safety Ted Jankowski said. Evacuations started at 9 p.m. and lasted until midnight.

"Residents were prepared," Jankowski said. "They evacuated when requested. It was a safe evacuation."

City officials debated the risks of evacuating residents during a late-night storm but decided to move forward with the safety precaution based on a recommendation from Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. The governor's office had predicted a storm surge of 21 feet, which would have surpassed the hurricane barrier by 3 feet, Fire Chief Antonio Conte said.

"That did not coincide with our predictions," Conte said. "But we actively evacuated the people from the area. We managed to do that in record time."

The governor's office sent state police and transportation officials to assist with the Monday night evacuation, Conte said. Police and fire officials canvassed 16 streets to issue the evacuation orders. All residents were able to leave their homes using their own transportation, he said.

"The anticipated water level, which was forecasted at about 14.5 feet, combined with waves topping out between 5 and 7 feet could have easily compromised the dike, leading to flooding in the Stamford waterfront," Doba said in an email.

The late-night evacuation sent 347 people to Stamford emergency shelters within a three hour period Monday night, Miller said. The Red Cross and Salvation Army worked with shelter officials to provide cots, blankets, food and water.